Bucs Players Confident In Fitzpatrick If Need Arises At Buffalo

Bucs fans everywhere held their breath for a moment when starting quarterback Jameis Winston winced in pain before making his way to the sideline following a shoulder injury against the Cardinals.

It’s fair to say that a team’s confidence may take a hit when a starter at any position goes down but even more so when it’s the starting quarterback. Some who watched the game might argue that confidence was left on the tarmac in Tampa. But enter Ryan Fitzpatrick, the 13 year veteran who has been in just about every situation you can put an NFL quarterback in. Despite a few questionable decisions, Fitzpatrick gave the Buccaneers reason to believe his play can win games if Winston misses more time.

“I’ve been in a lot of different situations,” Fitzpatrick said. “Having to bounce in there and do that, there are some things I wish I had back, but that’s the role that I’m in right now and a role that I’ve been in before. I just try to go out there and do the best I can no matter what the situation is.”

Just two years ago Fitzpatrick lead the New York Jets to a 10-6 season that saw him throw for 35 touchdowns. If that is even close to the type of production that takes the field in Winston’s absence, the Buccaneers have plenty of reason to be confident moving forward. Being in the league so long there is no reason why Fitzpatrick shouldn’t feel the same.

The only worry in his mind on Sunday? Not letting Winston down.

“When I signed on here— this is Jameis’ team one hundred percent, always,” Fitzpatrick said. “For me, the biggest thing when I’m out there is almost not letting him down. I know how much this means to him. I know how much him being out there means to him. When he came out last week that was one of the biggest things in my head, ‘Alright, what can I do to not let him down?’ I’ve probably felt that way with other guys before but with him especially. He’s a special guy. That was just kind of the overwhelming feeling I had when I was in there.”

Bucs QB Ryan Fitzpatrick

With Winston limited in practice, the weapons Fitzpatrick could be throwing to against his old team on Sunday agree that Fitzpatrick gives them a chance to win.

The Buccaneers top receiver, Mike Evans, connected with Fitzpatrick on a 37 yard score and is confident that connection could continue if the Harvard product gets the start against the Bills.

“He’s a veteran,” Evans said. “He’s been in the league a long time. He is a very, very smart player. Fitz is a smart quarterback and he has really good ball placement. He put it in places where only we can catch it. He gave us a chance to win.”

“Ryan came in the huddle once Jameis went down,” Humphries said. “He’s reserved, calm, and full of confidence. That’s cool for us to see a guy coming in who we haven’t seen in the huddle before in a game. To see him cool, calm, and reserved was reassuring to us.”

With Winston getting all the reps in practice and most of the snaps with the first team in preseason, Fitzpatrick has seen very little of the starting receivers on this Buccaneers offense. Despite not getting many reps with them previously, Fitzpatrick reciprocates this trust in the Buccaneers starting pass catchers.

“Offensively the talent level is extremely high on this team,” Fitzpatrick said. “It was fun being out there with them. It’s not just the two big names in Mike and DeSean. You look at a guy like Adam Humphries and how talented he is in the slot and the things that he really brings. He brings a unique element to our offense. There are a lot of different guys that we can spread the ball around to and that’s a nice thing to have as a quarterback.”

It remains to be seen if Fitzpatrick adds another start to an already lengthy list that spans over a decade. Even if it doesn’t happen, the Buccaneers trust that No. 14 will be ready the next time he is called upon.

About the author

Mark Cook currently is the director of editorial content and Bucs beat writer and has written for PewterReport.com since 2011. Cook has followed the Buccaneers since 1977 when he first began watching football with his Dad and is fond of the 1979 Bucs team that came within 10 points of going to a Super Bowl. His favorite Bucs game is still the 1979 divisional playoff win 24-17 over the Eagles. In his spare time Cook enjoys playing guitar, fishing, surfing and family time at the beach. In addition, Cook can be found in front of a television or in Doak Campbell any time the FSU Seminoles are playing. Cook is a native of Pinecrest in Eastern Hillsborough County and has written for numerous publications including the Tampa Tribune, In the Field and Ya'll Magazine. Cook can be reached at [email protected]

Fitz is savvy pro I was impressed with how he performed in the Cards game.
He made some really good throws in the game and also tucked the the ball and ran for I think 2 first downs. He did everything a backup QB should do.

Obviously Fitz is capable of playing well enough to win if the defense also does its job. I thought the defense was coming along pretty well after they held the Pats to just 19 points the week before, only to lay a massive rotten egg at Arizona.

It’s really impossible to tell how well the Bucs will play, because as a team it’s been inconsistent on a consistent basis.

If Jameis can play without extending his shoulder issue, fine, but it’s better to let him heal fully than to risk him getting hurt worse or losing a game for us because he can’t drive the ball. That’s up to the staff to figure out.

I watched Fitz absolutely shred the Bills last year when he had both Eric Decker and Brandon Marshall as starting WR.s. I mean he totally eviscerated them.
But it won’t matter who starts if Mike Smith decides to play Lovie Smith defense against them.
That defense he called against the Card was horrendous.
Very little blitzing or stunts and letting Hargreaves play off instead of being in tight coverage.
Hell, if Hargreaves can’t cover anyone, at least get him up on the line where he can try and knock them off the route for the first five yards.
Robert Ayres doesn’t seem to have the edge this year that he did last year, Swaggy looks like he only wants to tackle a buffer, Noah Spence is crippled again and poor Gerald McCoy is another year older.
And did anyone catch how the DE injured his shoulder against the Patriots by having to cover a RB in a zone blitz that wasn’t run very effectively. Geeeee whiz.